Phoenix has offered a $250,000 settlement to the family of a New York City woman who accidentally strangled herself while in police custody two years ago at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.

In a statement Monday, the Phoenix Police Department maintained its officers acted properly and acknowledged that the offer is just a fraction of the original $8 million negligence claim sought by Carol Ann Gotbaum’s three young children.

Bong water can count as a controlled substance, the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled Thursday in a decision that raises the threat of longer sentences for drug smokers who fail to dump the water out of their pipes.

In a 4-3 decision Thursday, the state”s highest court said a person can be prosecuted for a first-degree drug crime for 25 grams or more of bong water that tests positive for a controlled substance.

Medical malpractice is negligence committed by a professional health care provider–a doctor, nurse, dentist, technician, hospital or hospital worker-whoseperformance of duties departs from a standard of practice of those with similar

AUTOMOBILE ACCIDENTS

Q. I was in a car accident, but I think I can prove it was not completely myfault. Will this make a difference with regard to what damages ultimately areawarded?

A. In the past the rule was that if you could prove the other driver contributed inany way to the accident, he or she could be totally barred from recovering anything fromyou. But now most states have rejected such harsh results and instead look at thecomparative fault of the drivers. If a jury finds that you were negligent and that yournegligence, proportionally, contributed 25 percent to cause the injury and that thedefendant was 75 percent at fault, the defendant would only be responsible for 75 percentof your damages, or $75,000 if your damages totaled $100,000. In some states, a plaintiff may recover even if he or she were more negligent than the defendant, that is, negligent inthe amount of 51 percent or more. (See the “Automobiles” chapter for moreon standards of negligence for car accidents.)

Q. A neighbor who rides with me to work was injured when I got into a caraccident. Do I have to pay her medical bills?

A. In many states today, no-fault automobile insurance would protect you–andoften passengers in your car–by compensating those injured up to a specified level,regardless of who was at fault in the accident. About half of the states currently have nofaultinsurance. Though there is a strong trend away from them, some states still haveautomobile “guest statutes” that make drivers liable for injuries to nonpaying-or guest–passengers only if the drivers were “grossly negligent” by failing to use even slight care intheir driving. In a guest statute state, if your neighbor can prove she was not a guestpassenger–that both of you agreed to share expenses–then she possibly could recoverfrom you under ordinary negligence principles. Cases have also held a driver liable for thenegligent operation of a car and for harm caused by known defects, but not for injuriescaused by defects in the vehicle about which the driver had no knowledge.

Q. I received an injury when the bus I ride to work was involved in anaccident. Is the bus company at fault?

A. It’s likely. “Common carriers”–bus lines, airlines and railroads–transportpeople for a fee, owe their passengers “the highest degree of care” and are held to have aspecial responsibility to their passengers. Common carriers must exercise extra caution inprotecting their riders and do everything they can to keep them safe. Whether you winyour case will depend on the circumstances of the accident. Did the driver pull out in frontof a car and have to slam on the brakes? What were the road conditions? A jury will haveto consider those factual circumstances to determine if your driver acted negligently. Butas an employee of a common carrier, the driver must provide you with a high degree ofcare. (If the bus were hit by another car, the other driver may also be liable for yourinjuries.)

Q. My car sustained damage when it hit a pothole on a city street. Can Irecover from the city?

A. Some cities have pothole ordinances, a form of immunity that releases themfrom any liability for pothole accidents, except where they had prior notice. Whether youcan recover will depend on your city’s law controlling liability and its immunities againstsuits.

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NEGLIGENCE

Q. If someone causes an accident and I am hurt, on what basis will thatperson be responsible (liable)?

A. A person is liable if he or she was negligent in causing the accident. Personswho act negligently never set out (intend) to cause a result like an injury to another person.Rather, their liability stems from careless or thoughtless conduct or a failure to act when areasonable person would have acted. Conduct becomes “negligent” when it falls below alegally recognized standard of taking reasonable care under the circumstances to protectothers from harm.

Q. Negligence law seems so confusing. It uses words such as duty andcausation. What do they mean?

A. Negligence law can be complex and confusing even for people who are familiarwith it. To understand it better, forget all the legal jargon and go back to casino online the car accidentexample. A driver has a duty to use reasonable care to avoid injuring anyone he or shemeets on the road. If a driver fails to use reasonable care and as a result of that failureinjures you, then the driver is responsible (liable) to you for those injuries.

Q. Who determines whether a defendant has acted reasonably?

A. After being presented evidence by your lawyer, a judge or jury will decide whatan “ordinary” or “reasonable person” would have done in similar circumstances. In theexample of an automobile accident, a judge or jury is likely to find a driver negligent if hisor her conduct departed from what an ordinary reasonable person would have done insimilar circumstances. An example would be failing to stop at a stoplight or stop sign.

Q. What can I expect after the first consultation?A. If a lawyer believes your claim is one you can recover on-and you have signedthe retainer-he or she will proceed with gathering information about your claim. In orderto arrive at a figure for damages, your lawyer will need to determine the extent of yourinjuries, including pain and suffering, disability and disfigurement, the cost of medicaltreatment, and lost wages. Your lawyer then provides your damages figure to the insurerof the person who injured you. If the insurer considers it a valid claim, the case is likely tobe resolved early on and won’t have to be tried in court.

Q. If I am not happy with my lawyer, do I have to keep him or her?

A. No. You have a right to hire and fire any lawyer at any time.

Q. What does it mean to settle a case?

A. Settling a case means that you agree to accept money in return for droppingyour action against the person who injured you. You’ll actually sign a release absolvingthe other side of any further liability. To help you decide whether to accept the settlementoffer, your lawyer will be able to provide a realistic assessment of whether a lawsuit basedon your claim will be successful. (Settlement also can take place at any point in a lawsuitonce it is filed, including before trial or even after a case has been tried but before a juryreaches a verdict.) The decision to accept a settlement offer is yours, not the lawyer’s.

Q. What happens if I file a lawsuit?

A. You become the plaintiff in the case and the person who injured you becomesthe defendant. Lawyers for each side (and for the insurer) typically begin gathering factsthrough exchange of documents, written questions (interrogatories) or depositions(questions that are asked in person and answered under oath). This process is calleddiscovery. After discovery, many cases get settled before trial. Only a small percentage ofpersonal injury actions ever go to trial. Of the cases that do go to trial, most plaintiffs askfor a jury to hear their case, but personal injury actions can be decided by judges as well.That is known as a bench trial, as opposed to a jury trial.

Q. What if more than one person has caused my injury?

A. You must bring an action against every person who causes your injury. Thenegligence of two drivers, for example, may have produced a collision in which you wereinjured. According to traditional legal principles, each one could be held 100 percentliable to you. In a more recent legal trend, however, many jurisdictions have abolishedsuch “joint and several” liability and each defendant, known legally as a “joint tortfeasor,”becomes responsible for only that portion of the harm he or she caused. This is the rule ofcomparative negligence, which exists in most states. (See the section titled “AutomobileAccidents” for more on comparative negligence.)

A. If you win, a judge or jury awards you money, known as damages, for yourinjuries. That amount can include compensation for such expenses as medical bills andlost wages, as well as compensation for future wage losses. It also can compensate you forfuture lost wages and medical expenses and for physical pain and suffering. In addition,you may receive damages for any physical disfigurement or disability that resulted fromyour injury. The money is intended to restore your loss, is not considered as income, andis not taxable as income by the federal government or the states. Note that an award ofdamages does not necessarily translate into hard cash. You may have to take further legalsteps to actually collect the money. If a defendant against whom you have won a judgmentdoes not pay it, collection proceedings can be initiated. If the defendant owns property, forexample, you may be able to foreclose on it. Another option would be to garnish thedefendant’s wages. Your personal injury lawyer-or any lawyer you contact-would be ableto help you in this regard.

Q. Will the person who caused my injury get punished?

A. No. Punishment comes from criminal cases, not civil cases. Defendants in civilactions for personal injury do not receive jail terms or stiff fines as punishment. Those arecriminal sentences and personal injury cases are civil disputes. But juries and courts canaward what the law calls punitive damages when the defendant’s intentional acts haveinjured you. These awards are rather rare. Courts use them to punish people (and moreoften large corporations) who have behaved recklessly or against the public’s interest.Courts also hope that ordering the payment of punitive damages will discourage suchdefendants from engaging in the same kind of harmful behavior in the future.

Q. Does a personal injury lawsuit have to be filed within a certain amount oftime?

A. Every state has certain time limits, called “statutes of limitations,” that governthe period during which you must file a personal injury lawsuit. In some states, forexample, you may have as little as one year to file a lawsuit from an automobile accident.If you miss the statutory deadline for filing a case, your case is thrown out of court. (Asexplained later in this chapter, limitations in medical malpractice cases are oftencalculated differently.) You see, then, why it is important to talk with a lawyer as soon asyou receive or discover an injury.

Q. What if a person dies before bringing a personal injury lawsuit?

A. It depends on whether a person dies as a result of the injuries or from unrelatedcauses. If a person injured in an accident subsequently dies because of those injuries, thatperson’s heirs may recover money through a lawsuit. Every state has some law permittingan action when someone causes the wrongful death of another. And if a person with aclaim dies from unrelated causes, the tort claim survives in most cases and may be broughtby the executor or personal representative of the deceased person’s estate.